Justice Jacobs has moved up his announced retirement to accomodate the legislature's schedule. So, that pending vacancy looks to be filled well before we hit the dog days of summer. In the meantime, The Metropolitan Corporate Counsel has published a nice interview with Justice Jacobs. Among other things, he comments on the recent turnover in the courts:

Editor: There have been some recent departures from the Delaware courts, and perhaps that represents the highest turnover rate in the history of Delaware. Is there any real significance to that?

Jacobs: I don’t think so. Turnover is inevitable. We have 12-year terms, and some judges step down after one term, although their reappointment is guaranteed if they want to stay on. Bill Allen served for only one term, ending in 1997, and Steve Lamb did the same, stepping down in 2009. Bill Chandler stepped down three years ago after serving 24 years, when he was still a relatively young man. Norman Veasey also served only one term as Chief Justice.

He also shares some of his thoughts on MFW and forum non conveniens:

Editor: There are some recent Delaware cases that were very helpful in terms of providing a sense of how to construct a deal. I thought Kahn v. M&F Worldwide Corp. was very interesting in terms of articulating just exactly what had to be done to assure fairness in going private.

Jacobs: For the benefit of the corporate lawyers who structure these deals, there is now some definitive guidance. Will it solve all the problems? Will all the difficulties go away? Not really. Nevertheless, after many years of uncertainty, it is good to see some progress being made. Kahn is a good example of how Delaware courts can provide needed guidelines about ways that a particular form of transaction can be approved without excessive judicial intrusion.

Editor: Another case that also seems to have clarified the law was Martinez v. E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co. Inc.

Jacobs: Yes. Forum non conveniens is a doctrine that has been around a long time. In the federal system, the courts have some control over where competing lawsuits can be administered, but in the state system, there is no central mechanism. The states don’t have the equivalent of a Federal Panel on Multidistrict Litigation. Forum non conveniens is one doctrinal tool that the state courts can use to try to solve the multiforum problem. Martinez was a particular application of that doctrinal tool. The case did give the Supreme Court an opportunity to try to clarify the law of forum non conveniens, as to which questions have been raised over the past several years.